This past week has been nothing but cleaning and fixing random stuff, taking things to the dump. Ok maybe we did relax by the pool a little.
A few things: furniture in Spain is complete crap. There is no solid wood anything. However, they proudly charge a small fortune for this compressed particle board furniture. If you've ever been to Ikea, you know. Additionally all plastics are brittle and expensive... not like our beloved rubbermaid. I paid $100 for two large bins which broke immediately. Never again.
Our kitchen drawers have been broken since before we got here. We thought "hey, let's fix them". Not so much... another fab thing Spain loves to do is not make anything universal. The hardware store only carries the newer versions of hardware to fix whatever Ikea's selling. So, if you happen to have 30yr old kitchen cabinets with plastic drawers (yes, I said plastic, and not the nice bendy kind), you're s.o.l. (shit outta luck for you non military folk). We did what we could, but after all the hassle and wasted money trying to find a drawer or sliders that worked, I seriously want our landlords to pay US. Or if you have a pool pump cover with broken hinges, you won't find a decent replacement. This is not a DIY kind of place.
Our kitchen drawers have been broken since before we got here. We thought "hey, let's fix them". Not so much... another fab thing Spain loves to do is not make anything universal. The hardware store only carries the newer versions of hardware to fix whatever Ikea's selling. So, if you happen to have 30yr old kitchen cabinets with plastic drawers (yes, I said plastic, and not the nice bendy kind), you're s.o.l. (shit outta luck for you non military folk). We did what we could, but after all the hassle and wasted money trying to find a drawer or sliders that worked, I seriously want our landlords to pay US. Or if you have a pool pump cover with broken hinges, you won't find a decent replacement. This is not a DIY kind of place.
Every petroleum product is expensive... like plastics and paint, for example. $50 for a 4L can if you have it color matched (because that's extra). The kicker was that it really didn't match so now the walls look splotchy and we just don't have the energy to paint the entire wall. Or the budget. And where the hell is floor wax?!
I miss Lowe's. I have my Lowe's Gold card in my bag, ready for the new house and the projects in our future. Whatever... we're almost done. I just want to get the heck out of here already. I am so tired of stressing out about the condition of this old house and what this family is going to expect from us. The back awnings over the porch are ripped from being old as dirt, and again, they don't make them anymore so the entire system would need upgraded. That's 1,000 euro, which is about eleventy billion dollars. This shouldn't be our responsibility. We'll see when we turn the house over if they agree with us. Spanish people love to argue over money and responsibility. But, thus far our dealings with Eduardo's sons have been outstanding. They're a wonderful and understanding family. But, enough about the stressful part of this. There are silver linings... I think. Hang on a second. Breathe, Allison.
The house is so empty. Our loaner furniture is definitely smaller than what we used to have in here. The kids are driving me absolutely crazy, but only because I am too busy to do anything with them. They have no toys left and most of the time they can't swim because I have to stay inside and scrub something. We'll be done on the 1st.
Our June is packed full of awesome. We have an aparthotel reserved downtown near Retiro Park for our final week in Spain. Every night I go to bed thinking of Maryland and I have dreams of getting moved in, visiting family again, being back in my country. There was a lot to love about Spain. I will miss it... like I miss being in the Army. I will think back on it fondly and long to revisit it, but never be crazy enough to "sign up" for it again ;)
I am so ready to start this new chapter in our lives. The beach, the woods, the farms... oh the places we'll go. Once the house is done we have nothing left to worry about but canceling cell phones, closing our bank account, and getting ourselves and all our luggage to the airport on time. Nice :)
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